Drinking buddies deny copying alcoholic drink orders
Wednesday, March 5, 2014 - 08:31
in Psychology & Sociology
People who copy their friend's drinking behavior will deny that their decision has been influenced, researchers have shown. In a new study, conducted in a lab designed to imitate a bar, pairs of friends were brought together. One of the friends was made aware of the experimental aims and was told to drink alcoholic drinks throughout the session or to stick to soft drinks. While most people were strongly influenced by peers -- they mimicked their friend and drank more heavily when their friend did -- the majority of participants were unaware of this influence on their behavior and were adamant that their friend's choice did not have anything to do with their decision to drink.